Chapter 88 - 87: Suspecting the Neighbor

Chapter 88: Chapter 87: Suspecting the Neighbor

Xiao Yuan walked into the hall and bowed to Qu Hao and the others in turn. He glanced at Li Ye, then lowered his voice and said to Meng Mingzhe, "Master, may I have a word with you in private?"

"Just say it here. Fellow Daoist Qu and Sect Leader Zou are not outsiders," Meng Mingzhe rebuked with a frown.

’The Wenda Alliance is a murky business. Li Ye went through so much trouble to get the Cyan Sun Sect out of it, I can’t risk any more misunderstandings!’

’In my opinion, anything unrelated to the Wenda Alliance is trivial.’

’And if it *is* related to the Wenda Alliance, it’s better to say it here.’

’Besides, Li Ye will handle everything. That’s far better than having Li Ye leave with Qu Hao and being forced to deal with it myself.’

’I’ve figured it out. I’m really no good at these intricate, deceptive games!’

"Master, the disciples guarding the mountain just received a letter. Please take a look." Xiao Yuan glanced at Li Ye again, stepped forward, and respectfully handed a letter to Meng Mingzhe with both hands.

"Senior Brother Xiao, why do you keep looking at me? Does the letter have something to do with me?" Li Ye’s perception was sharper than anyone else’s. Even before Qu Hao, he had sensed Xiao Yuan pacing around outside several times.

After Xiao Yuan entered, he kept glancing his way. It had to be about him.

’Here in the Cyan Sun Sect, all my information comes from the outside. I rely on it to assess the situation, so how could I possibly miss a clue that involves me?’

’If it involves me, it’s most likely related to the Wenda Alliance.’

Meng Mingzhe opened the letter and read it in a single glance. His expression changed, and he froze on the spot. He looked at Li Ye, opening his mouth but not knowing what to say.

"Sect Leader Meng, what happened?" Qu Hao asked. "Is it related to Li?"

"This..." Meng Mingzhe hesitated.

"Elder Meng, just say it. With Junior Martial Uncle Qu and Elder Zou here, is there anything they can’t solve?" Li Ye said.

"Your fourth senior brother, Ge Rui, has been captured by people from the Demon Sect. They specifically demand to trade him for you. Otherwise, they’ll flatten the Cyan Sun Sect." Meng Mingzhe took a deep breath and simply handed the letter directly to Li Ye.

’The Dao Sect, the Demon Sect... more and more factions are getting dragged into this.’

’Every one of them is an entity the Cyan Sun Sect can’t afford to provoke. I’m at a complete loss, with absolutely no idea what to do!’

’What sin did I commit in a past life to deserve a walking disaster like Li Hao?’

’When he first joined, Li Hao seemed so innocent. How could the entire Sect have been so wrong about him!’

Li Ye read the letter. Qu Hao, who was next to him, also took the opportunity to read its contents. He asked strangely, "Li, why do the people from the Demon Sect want you?"

"Yes, why are they looking for me? I’m just an insignificant nobody." Li Ye frowned, looking even more bewildered than Qu Hao. "Could it be related to the Wenda Alliance? Is this a part of their plan?"

Watching Li Ye’s pretense, Meng Mingzhe suddenly felt a bit of schadenfreude. ’The Dao Sect and the Demon Sect have collided. Let’s see how you’re going to talk your way out of this one.’

"Why do all the clues point to the Cyan Sun Sect?" Li Ye looked at the letter in his hand and muttered to himself, "Why the Cyan Sun Sect?"

"Yes, why the Cyan Sun Sect?" Qu Hao echoed.

"What role is the Cyan Sun Sect playing in all this? Are we being used as a target to draw everyone’s attention? But the Cyan Sun Sect isn’t big enough for that! Why did the Demon Sect single me out? Why me? What part do I play in this?" Li Ye frowned, pacing back and forth in the side hall, deep in thought.

’This is a disaster!’

Meng Mingzhe was so nervous his heart felt like it had stopped beating.

His mouth was dry. He watched Li Ye pace back and forth, terrified that one wrong move would expose the deception to Qu Hao. If that happened, the Cyan Sun Sect would be finished.

’I don’t dare dream of the Cyan Sun Sect rising to become some Underground Emperor anymore. Given my abilities, I couldn’t handle it even if they made me the Alliance Leader of the Wenda Alliance.’

Qu Hao wasn’t thinking that deeply. He held his breath, not daring to disturb Li Hao.

Xiao Yuan didn’t understand what was going on. He asked in a low voice, "Master, what’s the Wenda Alliance? Does it have something to do with the Demon Sect capturing Junior Brother Ge?"

"Don’t talk," Meng Mingzhe and Qu Hao snapped simultaneously.

Xiao Yuan flinched in fear, shrinking back and not daring to speak again.

"There’s still too little information." As if startled from his thoughts, Li Ye came back to his senses, shook his head, and looked at Qu Hao again. "Junior Martial Uncle Qu, can you tell me everything you know about the Wenda Alliance, including everything that happened after you returned to the Dao Sect?"

"Alright." Qu Hao now had exceptional trust in Li Ye and nodded without hesitation.

"Xiao Yuan, you may leave," Meng Mingzhe said.

"No need. Let Senior Brother Xiao stay," Li Ye said with a smile. "Elder Meng, Senior Brother Xiao already knows about the Wenda Alliance. We need more people to get involved and investigate it. If even I can be targeted, I’m afraid all the sects have been infiltrated by the Wenda Alliance and are as full of holes as a sieve."

’As full of holes as a sieve!’

Qu Hao’s heart trembled again. Not daring to delay, he recounted everything in detail: how he discovered traces of the Wenda Alliance, brought the person back to the Dao Sect, and then went to capture Pan Yun.

"Junior Martial Uncle Qu, what did Pan Yun say at the time?" Li Ye asked.

"He just said he didn’t know much about the Wenda Alliance, that it was Ji Tianwen who led him to join, promising him many benefits..." Qu Hao said.

"And how did the Elders act during Pan Yun’s interrogation?" Li Ye asked again.

"The Third Elder vehemently pleaded his innocence..." Qu Hao recalled the scene in the Law Enforcement Hall and described the behavior of each Elder in detail.

In the process of describing it, he inevitably added his own subjective perspective. He piled on various adjectives, making everyone sound like a traitor. It seemed as if every person’s actions and expressions revealed something strange and abnormal.

Listening to Qu Hao’s description, Meng Mingzhe’s eyes grew wider and wider. If he didn’t know the Wenda Alliance was a fabrication, he would have truly believed the Dao Sect had been infiltrated and was as full of holes as a sieve.

Zou Kun was dumbfounded as he listened.

By now, he was completely convinced of the Wenda Alliance’s existence. If even the Dao Sect had been infiltrated, a major disaster was probably imminent.

Xiao Yuan had his doubts, but the ones discussing these matters were a Direct Disciple of the Dao Sect and his own master.

In his mind, these people were authorities. How could he dare question the content of their discussion? Naturally, he too came to believe in the existence of the Wenda Alliance and felt that this organization was terrifying.

Taking in everyone’s expressions, Li Ye inwardly shook his head. ’Paranoia truly makes one see enemies everywhere. The old adages were right.’

’Even without my involvement, you’d probably manage to dig up a few "traitors" from your own ranks.’

’With all the top experts tied up, everything else will be much easier to handle.’

Having learned the current situation of the Dao Sect from Qu Hao, Li Ye breathed a sigh of relief. He nodded and said, "Junior Martial Uncle Qu, they’ve been hidden for a thousand years. It’s impossible to trick them into revealing themselves with just a few words.

"Better to kill the innocent than let the guilty go free. The Sect Leader did the right thing. The Wenda Alliance has already pushed the matter to the Dao Sect’s doorstep. I fear their next move is imminent. We don’t have much time."

"Li, what should we do next?" Qu Hao asked.

"Sect Leader Zou, I’ll have to trouble you to personally make a trip to the Dao Sect. Inform the Sect Leader of our analysis so he can prepare his defenses early."

Li Ye naturally stepped into the role of a leader, giving out instructions. "Please have the Sect Leader inform the Sect Leaders of the Sword Sect and the Buddhist Sect. Ask them to rally their forces and take precautions ahead of time as well. The three Sect Leaders hold immense power; they can’t possibly be members of the Wenda Alliance.

"Remind the Sect Leader to not only guard against people within the sect, but also to watch out for a surprise attack from the Three Evil Sects. If the Wenda Alliance could incite the first great war between the righteous and evil paths, they can incite a second. You can’t be too careful."

’Good heavens!’

’Dragging the Upper Three Sects into this... you’re unbelievably audacious!’

Veins throbbed on Meng Mingzhe’s forehead. He didn’t dare say a single word. The more he spoke, the more mistakes he might make. He had already been tied to Li Ye’s warship; one misstep and he would be doomed beyond redemption.

’Never mind anything else, I could never withstand the wrath of the Dao Sect!’

Zou Kun looked toward Qu Hao.

"Listen to Li Hao," Qu Hao nodded, taking out his token. "Sect Leader Zou, if you present my token, the Sect Leader will naturally believe you."

"There’s no time to lose. Please depart as soon as possible, Sect Leader," Li Ye said. "Be careful of a sneak attack from the Demon Sect."

Zou Kun nodded, bowed to the group, and then turned to leave.

"Junior Martial Uncle Qu, Sect Leader, since the people from the Demon Sect specifically asked for me, let’s make the trip and go see them!" Li Ye turned to Meng Mingzhe and Qu Hao. "They might have more clues."

"Just the three of us?" Meng Mingzhe asked.

"Yes, just the three of us," Li Ye affirmed with a nod. "The Wenda Alliance has even infiltrated the Dao Sect, let alone our Cyan Sun Sect.

"Right now, all the clues point to the Cyan Sun Sect. We don’t know how many Wenda Alliance spies there are within our sect. No one can be trusted.

"Even Junior Martial Uncle Qu has only just traced the clues here. There won’t be too many people from the Demon Sect either. Otherwise, they wouldn’t be making threats; they would have stormed our gates and captured me directly.

"Elder Meng is in the Divinity Transformation Realm, and Junior Martial Uncle Qu is a Direct Disciple of the Dao Sect Leader. The three of us are more than enough."

As he spoke, he looked at Xiao Yuan.

Xiao Yuan shivered violently and quickly declared his loyalty, "Junior Brother, I’m definitely one of us! Before this, I’d never even heard the name Wenda Alliance."

"Senior Brother Xiao, I wasn’t saying you were," Li Ye said with a smile. "After Elder Meng and I leave, just go about your business as usual. Don’t mention our whereabouts or anything about the Wenda Alliance to anyone. We’ll sort everything out when we get back."

"Yes," Xiao Yuan said.

"If you leak any information, I’ll hold you personally responsible," Qu Hao threatened.

Meng Mingzhe was speechless. ’Looking at Qu Hao, even if I confessed that this was the main headquarters of the Wenda Alliance, he probably wouldn’t believe me.’

The meeting point designated by the Demon Sect was a place called Gourd Mountain.

There was no time to lose. Qu Hao and Meng Mingzhe immediately left the Cyan Sun Sect with Li Ye, heading straight for Gourd Mountain.

Flying through the air, Li Ye looked down upon this unfamiliar world, breathing in the air of freedom, feeling his spirit soar.

’I’m finally out of the Cyan Sun Sect! From now on, I’m as free as a bird in the sky or a fish in the sea.’

’Derived Skills, a skyrocketing Skill Level, here I come!’

Compared to the excited Li Ye, both Meng Mingzhe and Qu Hao were weighed down by heavy thoughts.

One was worried about the Wenda Alliance’s power and the future of the Dao Sect;

The other was also worried—worried that Li Ye would lose control, the Wenda Alliance lie would explode, and the Cyan Sun Sect would have no future.